What stands out worked out from the figures below

Cromwell has the most people working from home (18.4%).

Stafford has the most affordable homes ($264k median).

What matters to you?

Pick a few. We’ll pull those rows to the top and mark which town comes out ahead on each. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

Raising kidsAffordabilityOwning a homeShort commuteWorking from homeYounger crowdSettled, older crowdGrowing town

Measure	Cromwell	Stafford
People
Population	14,334Highest	11,511Lowest
Median age	43.5±2.5Lowest 6% above CT	46.7±4.8Highest 14% above CT
	Stafford and Cromwell are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18	19.1%±3.1Lowest CT: 20.2%	21.5%±3.1Highest CT: 20.2%
	Stafford and Cromwell are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+	22%±3.2 CT: 18.5%	22%±3 CT: 18.5%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+	49.2%Highest CT: 42.5%	28.5%Lowest CT: 42.5%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents	6.4%±1.8Highest CT: 7.1%	3.5%±1.3Lowest CT: 7.1%
	Cromwell and Stafford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian	$110,596±$10kHighest 15% above CT	$93,235±$16kLowest about the CT average
	Cromwell and Stafford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied	$325,200±$22kHighest 11% below CT	$263,800±$22kLowest 28% below CT
Rentmedian gross, monthly	$1,628±$154Highest 9% above CT	$1,086±$85Lowest 27% below CT
Property taxmedian, yearly	$6,137Highest 8% below CT	$5,131Lowest 23% below CT
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent	61%±11.9Highest CT: 52.6%	41.5%±12.2Lowest CT: 52.6%
	Cromwell and Stafford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line	5.9%Lowest CT: 10%	7.4%Highest CT: 10%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes	82.4%Highest CT: 66.5%	79.5%Lowest CT: 66.5%
Typical home builtmedian year	1976Highest 9 yrs newer than CT	1970Lowest 3 yrs newer than CT
Getting to work
Average commuteone way	24 minLowest 11% below CT	26 minHighest about the CT average
Work from home	18.4%±4Highest CT: 16%	11%±3.5Lowest CT: 16%
	Cromwell and Stafford are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading	#69 of 149 in CT	#96 of 149 in CT
School district	Cromwell School District	Stafford School District
High school in town	Cromwell High School	Stafford High School
Students per teacherat that high school	11.1Highest	9.8Lowest
On TownTapestry
Old photos in History	None yet	None yet

CT average · Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates 2020–2024; 2010 & 2020 decennial census; NCES Common Core of Data. “±” is the Census margin of error. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. School rank compares math and reading proficiency against the state average.